The new Reed Timmer is an offensive nightmare for opposing coaches. The Drake senior muscles through the lane toward the hoop for one bucket and dishes the ball to a teammate for another. On the rare occasion he’s open in the corner, he cans triples with ease.

And on his way back down the court, Timmer will wag his tongue and tap three fingers on his temple — as if to say: I can’t miss.

“He’s making a lot of shots,” first-year Drake coach Niko Medved said. “But the thing that has stood out to me is that he’s playing with a ton of confidence in every situation. He has a lot of swagger.”

The Bulldogs enter Saturday’s Hy-Vee Classic at 5-5 overall, their best start since when they opened the 2012-13 season 10-3. Medved hopes to continue the early momentum in Saturday's 1 p.m. game against Iowa (5-6) at Wells Fargo Arena.

Part of the reason for the early-season momentum has been Drake’s offense, which is on a blistering pace of 81.5 points per game, tops in the Missouri Valley Conference. At the center of that charge has been Timmer, who's been saving his best season for last.

A native of New Berlin, Wisconsin, Timmer is putting up 20.7 points per game, which ranks tops in the Valley, 35th nationally and, for now, is the best of his Drake career. He also leads the league in free-throw percentage at 92.5 percent (19th nationally).

Even more, Timmer has evolved into a consistent perimeter threa, canning 53.2 percent of his shots from beyond the arc, good for fifth in the Valley and ninth in the country. He has eclipsed 20 points in five games this season after doing so just seven times in 31 contests last year.

“I think some of the credit goes to coach Niko’s new offense,” Timmer said. “With what we’ve been able to do, it’s gotten me a lot of easier shots, and I’ve been able to knock them down. All of that, plus the confidence, has helped push me to a higher level.

“There are a lot of reads that are easier than in years past. There’s a lot of movement and a lot of cuts, and it creates more opportunities for us to get open, cleaner looks. It’s a lot easier for me knowing what to expect every game than having to guess, and that’s a huge part.”

CLOSE

Senior guard Niko Medved explains what’s been working so well so far this season for the Bulldogs.
Cody Goodwin/The Register

The offense has undoubtedly been the strength of this scrappy Drake team. The Bulldogs have posted 90 or more points in three of their five victories and are averaging 10.5 made three-pointers per game, which ranks 21st nationally.

“(Niko) loves to push in transition and just play, instead of always being in an offense,” said senior Graham Woodward, who is second in scoring behind Timmer at 11.7 points per game. “For us, on misses, what we try to do is push and attack.

“Since we have four guards who can all score the ball and attack and look ahead — just players, basically — that’s been the best part. We have that freedom of just being able to play.”

That rate has caught the eye of Iowa coach Fran McCaffery. The Hawkeyes are the seventh-tallest team in the country and will have a tremendous size advantage in Saturday’s first game, as Drake’s lineup is the eighth-smallest.

But that disparity won’t matter, McCaffery said, if Iowa can’t stop the Bulldogs from scoring.

“They have a lot of guys making 3s,” McCaffery said. “(Against Minnesota), they made 12 and it was kind of an off night. You play a team that makes 15 3s, that's going to be a hard team to beat, I don't care who it is.”

It will take a mighty effort to combat Iowa’s size, but Drake appears up for the challenge. Timmer said simplicity has been the key to the Bulldogs’ offensive success. That recipe won’t change on Saturday.

“The more we just keep it simple, the more the shots will come,” he said. “We know we’re going to miss some and make some, so we just have to stay on track and stay focused, and it’ll lead to better shots down the stretch. And we have confidence we can knock them down.”

Cody Goodwin covers wrestling and high school sports the Des Moines Register. Follow him on Twitter at @codygoodwin.